summer break

 We have entered Phase III of summer break.

Phase I was the first 1.5 weeks after school let out for the summer. I didn't attempt to drag the kids out to parks or anything, we all just kinda chilled with screens, all of us recovering from school in our own way.

Phase II was the following four weeks where Thing One (referred to as Nova in old posts) attended an extended school year (ESY) four days a week. External demand and structure helped with a routine of sorts. 

And now Phase III ... ESY is over, and school starts in a month. I have them for a week, then their father has them for about 10 days of vacation, then I get them back for another 2 weeks before school starts up again. Not much time to settle into much of a routine before things get changed around.

I'm both dreading and looking forward to school starting up.

Dreading: T1 starts Junior High (Middle School) (6th Grade). New building. New people. New schedule. Different expectations. I'm preparing my buffer for issues.

Looking forward: I work when the kids are in school. I took the summer off because we've had issues with daycare albeit when they were younger, but this mama has a rather catastrophic view of the world, so I hesitate at sending them back into daycare. Also, they are aging out of daycare anyway, yikes! An hourly  in-home sitter would cost an arm and a leg. So my solution for this summer was to take the summer off. Perhaps another solution can pop up before next summer. I'm looking forward to earning a living again and addressing my financial worries and woes.

Lynne

9:50am